Decision details

The Senior Executive and Regulatory Business Officer provided the Welsh Language Sub-Committee with the observations of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee following its consideration of the Welsh Language Promotion Strategy at the meeting held on the 21^st March 2023. Members’ attention was drawn to Section 5 of the covering report, which summarised the key observations of the Committee.

The Head of Community and Welsh Language Services then provided the Sub-Committee with the revised copy of the Welsh Language Promotion Strategy Action Plan to support the implementation of the Welsh Language Promotion Strategy 2022-2027, which had been approved by the Committee on 25^th October 2022.

The Chair thanked officers for the report and commended the amount of work undertaken to produce the Promotion Strategy and robust Action Plan. The Chair spoke of the ambitious targets in relation to the WESP and increasing the number of learners by approximately 10% over the next ten years and the future opportunities arising from the 2024 Eisteddfod. The Chair also spoke positive of the links with the communities and emphasised the importance of communities to meet the ambitious targets.

The Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Corporate Services also spoke positive of the Promotion Strategy and Action Plan and felt that it was evident that the Welsh Language run throughout all areas of the Local Authority and its services. The Cabinet Member was particularly pleased to note that Elected Members and staff had the opportunity to learn the language internally as part of their roles and noted that there was a high intake of the provision. The Cabinet Member commented that this provision would not only increase the use of the language in a work setting, but also at home with families and friends.

The Cabinet Member for Development and Prosperity praised the content of the report. Whilst acknowledging that it would be more difficult to increase the number of Welsh speakers in the community, the Cabinet Member was pleased to note the steps in place to afford partners the opportunity to contribute to the success of the overall strategy. In reference to section 5.6 of the report, the Cabinet Member felt it would be important for the Council to monitor part 2 of the Action Plan.

The Cabinet Member for Health & Social Care spoke of the benefits of learning the Welsh Language and felt that the report demonstrated the Council’s commitment to achieving its goals. The Cabinet Member acknowledged that taking up a new language later in life can feel daunting and questioned if there were figures available in respect of take up from this demographic.

The Service Manager for Welsh Language Services assured the Committee that Welsh for Adults work hard to target the demographic, particularly at a time when the RCT Eisteddfod is approaching. The Service Manager suggested that such data is included in the Action Plan once available, to target the community accordingly.

Discussions ensued around learning Welsh outside of an education setting and Menter Iaith informed Members that work had been commissioned to look into the 2021 census data, which had shown that RCT was at its peak in the 18–24-year-old bracket but for the age 65+, figures were very low. As such, Members were informed that work was being undertaken to increase the opportunities with partners to engage with the local community.

The Chair thanked participants for their contributions and the Welsh Language Cabinet Sub-Committee RESOLVED:

1.    To note the comments and observations of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee;

2.    To note the content of this report and the associated Action Plan; and

3.    To approve the Welsh Language Promotion Strategy 2022-27 Strategy Action Plan.